Issues

Stakes Are High for Iran Nuclear Negotiations March 30, 2015Ryan CostelloThis week, the U.S. has a chance to lead an international coalition into an agreement that would guard against any attempt by Iran to obtain a nuclear weapon. However, the decades since the Iranian Revolution in 1979 are littered with missed opportunities to resolve differences between the U.S. and Iran, ...

Why Iran’s Supreme Leader Wants a Nuclear Deal March 26, 2015Trita ParsiThe ayatollah is not an unyielding opponent of an agreement with the United States.
There are few world leaders as powerful yet mysterious as Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Most of what has been written about him in English only adds to the confusion surrounding the man (Akbar Ganji’s writings ...

House Letter is Careful to Leave Door Open For Iran Deal March 25, 2015Jamal AbdiRyan CostelloWashington, DC – In a signal of a shifting political landscape in Congress for nuclear talks with Iran, a House letter sent to the President and endorsed by the hawkish American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) outlines a position closer to the Obama Administration approach rather than the hardline demands favored most prominently by ...

Congress Lays Tripwires for Iran Nuclear Accord March 20, 2015Ryan CostelloAs negotiators work to clear the final hurdles for a framework nuclear deal with Iran, Senate Foreign Relations Chairman Bob Corker (R-TN) and Ranking Member Robert Menendez (D-NJ) have decided to delay a markup of a bill that would lay tripwires that threaten any final deal.

Building a “New Day” this Norooz, through Service March 19, 2015Nastaran AslaniIt’s that time of the year again. Every year I eagerly look forward to celebrating Norooz, the beautiful and ancient Persian New Year celebration of the arrival of the spring, new beginnings, and the resurrection of nature after a long cold winter.
Norooz is a time for hope, love and generosity, ...

UN: Iran Human Rights Worsens, Hopes If Diplomacy Succeeds March 19, 2015Michael KamerasWashington, DC – The United Nations’ Special Rapporteur on human rights in Iran, Dr. Ahmed Shaheed, has issued a new report documenting the worsening human rights situation in Iran.
In 2014, the report says, Iran executed 753 people – the highest number in 12 years – and continued to commit violations from politically motivated arrests ...

Why Iran Won’t Capitulate March 17, 2015Trita ParsiReza MarashiPart of the reason why opponents to a nuclear deal with Iran are so bewildered by President Barack Obama’s diplomacy is because their belief that Iran can be forced to capitulate. They adhere to a George W. Bush administration-era argument: If the U.S. only were to ramp up pressure, it ...

Memo: Congress Considers Its Options on an Iran Deal March 16, 2015Tyler CullisWith growing confidence that a framework nuclear deal with Iran will be sealed before the March 31 deadline, Congress is turning its attention to oversight of any nuclear agreement.

Fifty Pro-Diplomacy Organizations Urge Senate to Reject Dangerous Iran Legislation March 12, 2015NIAC Staff
Washington, DC – On the heels of a series of political stunts on Capitol Hill that have heightened partisanship and threatened to sabotage nuclear negotiations with Iran, 50 organizations sent a letter to the Senate today warning against legislation that would entrust Congress with expanded powers to block an eventual ...

Smart Senators Must Abandon Cotton and the Iran Hawks March 11, 2015Jamal AbdiYesterday, Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Angus King (I-ME) went to the Senate floor to decry the latest outrageous stunt pulled by Congressional hawks to try to torpedo nuclear talks with Iran.

Ford and Helsinki, Obama and Iran March 11, 2015Tyler CullisIn July 1975, just weeks before President Gerald Ford planned to travel to Helsinki, Finland, to wrap up more than three years of negotiations with European partners and the Soviet Union, Senate lawmakers moved to block what they believed to be a “one-sided agreement” favoring the Soviets. Like their anti-Iran ...

NIAC Response to Wilkins Ruling March 5, 2015NIAC StatementSome confusion has arisen as to the nature of the opinion filed by Judge Wilkins on February 10, 2015 in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.

Policy Memo: Analysis of Netanyahu’s Speech March 4, 2015NIACNetanyahu was wrong about the Iraq war, wrong about the interim nuclear deal that has constrained Iran’s nuclear activities, and he is wrong about the President’s negotiations toward a comprehensive agreement with Iran. Aside from the debate over the breach of protocol and damage to the U.S.-Israeli relationship, this was a ...